Tuesday, April 19, 2011

The Numbers:
  • Fasting blood glucose:  119 mg/dl.  At least I am under 120.  
  • Weight:  188 lbs.
  • Exercise:  None.  Spent the morning getting rust off of an old skillet.  Don't ask, long story.  Felt guilty the whole day. 
  • Mood:  6.5.  No exercise, felt bad all day. Get over it. All in all, a bit of a down day, despite a decent sale.
Menu:
  • Breakfast: Banana, orange, oatmeal with dates. 
  • Lunch:  Last nights 4 bean southwest chili
  • Dinner:  Late, some whole wheat pasta with some slice leftover sausage from Sunday and a bit of pesto.  Not the best, but I did not have much of it.  
  • Snacks:  A few potato chips and a rice cake with some peanut butter.  
Better day tomorrow, right? 

Monday, April 18, 2011

Out of My Mind on a Monday Moanin'

Busy weekend and I did absolutely nothing but goof off.  Not complaining too much because come Monday morning I felt pretty relaxed and that is the whole point of a weekend, right?  So relaxed I did not want to get out of bed this morning.  Isn't it Memorial Day yet?

The Numbers for Today:
  •  Fasting Blood Glucose:  108 mg/dl. Very good.  
  • Weight:  188 lbs.  Have I finally gotten off of the schnide? 
  • Exercise:  45 minutes.  It's been warm in Houston and I love the sweat.
  • Mood:  8.5: Down a pound and relaxing weekend. Only down side is I have left a lot things undone.
Menu for Today:
  • Breakfast:  Banana, orange, and oatmeal flavored with herbal blueberry tea and dried fruit.  
  • Lunch:  Leftover stuff.  A bit of split pea hummus, a whole wheat pita round and some red pepper.  Filling.
  • Dinner:  Four Bean Southwest Chili with brown rice and sliced avocado.  Tasty stuff if I do say so  myself.  It's from a McDougall "Quick & Easy Cookbook" and the recipes he and his wife developed are indeed quick, easy to make, tasty, low fat and good for me. Also cheap to make. That's important right now.  
  • Snacks. Some kind of party mix stuff that probably was not in the health food category.  Not much of it, if that helps. Tasty, though.  Probably negated the benefits of the my good boy lunch and dinner.
McDougall's whole approach is that acquiring or adhering to a diet, a way of eating, is a life long commitment.  His particular view is a low fat, vegan diet based on whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables.  It's not unlike Jack LaLanne's preferred diet.  I will say this, the food is tasty, filling, nutritious and satisfying.  No added fat, no meat, no dairy and if I remember correctly, no nuts.  People who do adhere to his diet philosophy lose a lot of weight and seem to get their health back.  It's a hard diet to be on if only because the world is so very unfriendly to his approach.  Finding a restaurant that fits his guidelines is not easy, but sticking as close as possible, generally, will have it's have a salubrious outcome.

With McDougall's diet plan in mind, I was not surprised to see a contradictory view, namely, grains are making us fat.  If there is one thing I have learned, take a diet statement or rule or idea or philosophy or plan backed by research and facts and you can find the opposite somewhere else that is backed up by equally compelling research and facts. 

Me, I don't buy grains are making us fat only because food is just so available, easy to get and cheap.  Who doesn't like to eat?  We eat more because we can.  Because we can eat more and do; we get fatter.  We don't exercise much.  It's fun to sit around, watch some TV and eat.  We have developed a whole segment of our culture around eating and doing nothing.  Are grains to blame?  I doubt it, no more than the cheeseburger is to blame. 

Others say grains, particularly whole grains, are good because they are low in fat, filling and breakdown slowly so they do not cause a spike in blood glucose.  I read such an article today.  That is all seems good, yet it is not hard finding results and opinions backed by research that this is not what really happens and eating grains is bad.  Look at Atkins and "The Drinking Man's Diet."  Both diets are backed by facts and research, proving carbohydrates are bad and fat is good. That is the exact opposite of McDougall's diet,  based on research and facts, proving  carbohydrates are good and fat is bad. 

What is a person to do?

Easy.  Find a diet you like and works for you and stick to it.   It's your life, enjoy it. Just remember the Twinkie's diet.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Friday Eve

Friday Eve, that's Thursday on the calender.  Tomorrow's the big day to usher in the weekend and Tony's night and his blessed margaritas.  Some may regard that as a bit of a blasphemy, but I feel so much better after my usual two of them.

My Numbers for Friday Eve.
  • Fasting Blood Glucose:  98 mg/dl.  Schwing!
  • Weight:  189 lbs.  Still there.
  • Exercise:  45 minutes on the bike.  Good ride.
  • Mood:  8.0.  Pizza night tonight and Tony's tomorrow. What could be better?
 The Menu:
  • Breakfast:  Banana, Texas Ruby Red grapefruit, oatmeal infused with blueberry herbal tea and chopped apricots and prunes. 
  • Lunch:  A Veggie Delite sandwich at Subway.
  • Dinner:  Pizza, one slice, and two glasses of wine. 
  • Snacks:  A can of V8 (two servings of vegetables and all of the salt needed for a week) and a handful of Triscuits. 
And You Thought It Was Just Good in Cookies.
Cinnamon may be good for people with type 2 diabetics.  It may not cure it, but it can help stabilize a patients blood sugar according to some research, and provided the patient takes enough of it daily.  That amount would be about a teaspoon daily..  There are worse dietary supplements.  Hey, it it makes oatmeal and bran muffins taste good.  My guess is that in combination with a sensible diet and exercise, it does help, as most dietary supplements would do.

I Think I Just Scored

Wednesday, posted late on Friday Eve. 
 
Today's Numbers:
  • Fasting Blood Glucose:  117 mg/dl.  Late night beans and rice dinner.  Still good.  
  • Weight:  189 1/2 pounds.  I am almost at 188.  I have stuck at this for so long that I feel hitting 188 will some major breakthrough.  
  • Exercise:  55 minutes.  Working in some resistance band work.  Gotta pump up the arms. 
  • Mood:  8.0.  Tomorrow, the big move to 188 lbs?  
Menu:
  • Breakfast:  Banana, Texas Ruby Red grapefruit, oatmeal with blueberry herbal tea, chopped prunes and apricots.
  • Lunch:
  • Dinner:  
  • Snacks:
I Guess I Am a Healthy Guy:
Going by this article on Fox News, hey, I am scoring ok.  Pink nails, sufficient vital bodily fluids, good resting heart rate, elastic skin and proper colored, and smelling, urine.

That last sign reminded me of my bad old type 2 diabetes days.  I would notice then that my urine did have a slightly sweet smell.  Okay, I know, it's a bit off putting discussing the smell of someone's urine, but it was a sign that I had a problem and I didn't now it that it was a sign that I had problem.  Message sent, received and not understood.

The smell was caused by excess glucose being excreted.  My body was attempting to get rid of the excess, the hard way, through the kidneys.  Whatever abuse I put those two guys through,  I can only hope there is no issues to come from my past stupidity.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Monday Moanin'

Busy weekend around the house and flower beds.  My arms are so sore.  As the Charming Mrs. SWMBO says, it's nice to go back to work so we can  relax.

The Numbers to Start the Week.
  • Fasting Blood Glucose:  103 ml/dg.  Good. I am normal.
  • Weight:  189 lbs.
  • Exercise: 55 minutes, 45 minutes on the bike and 10 on the Stretchbands.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO has been complaining that my arms are too thin. 
  • Mood:  7.5.  Gotta bulk up the arms a bit. 
 The Menu:
  • Breakfast:  Banana, Texas Ruby Red grapefruit, Oatmeal with craisins. 
  • Lunch:  Leftover split pea hummus on two thin slices of Italian bread, apple, 1/2 cup of cantaloupe.  The hummus is really good. Made a great appetizer on Sunday afternoon. 
  • Dinner:  Grilled chicken salad.   
  • Snacks:  A few Triscuits.  They were whole wheat or grain.  Lots of fat, though.  Tasty, too. 
Fry Nazis:  No Fries for You!
As much as I agree with the thought that no fries makes good dietary sense, what to eat for lunch is not business of the NYC Mayor's office.  The nanny state grows.  Like faith, one has to come his diet on his own.  Me, I try to go low fat.  Someone else, that's up to the individual.  We all live and die and eventually die by our own decisions.  

    Monday, April 4, 2011

    I'm Stuck on You

    Before we get to the gross out news of the day, The Numbers for Thursday, March 31.  I just forgot to post it:
    • Fasting Blood Glucose level:  100 ml/dg. Sweet.
    • Weight:  190 lbs.  Sigh
    • Exercise:  45 minutes on the bike.  Nice, sweaty ride.
    • Mood:  7.00.  Damned pound is ruining my day. 
    Today's Menu:
    • Breakfast: Texas Ruby Red grapefruit, two wedges of corn bread.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO made some corn bread last Sunday and it is time it were gone.  Fresh baked goods - the real stuff, the stuff not design to sit on a store's shelf for more than a day or the that made at home - do not have a long shelf life.
    • Lunch:  Leftover pasta and sauce
    • Dinner:  Pizza.  One slice. 
    • Snacks:  A few chips and cracker
    Gross Out Story of the Day.
    Welcome to Ohio:  A morbidly obese man two years ago plopped himself on his recliner and stayed there, as in did not get out of it, as in decided not to move off of it. He chose to live that way. Heck of a decision there, guy.

    He lived with two other adults, one described as his girlfriend, and neither did anything to help him.  There was no signs of abuse.  He just wanted to sit in that chair and he became part of it. The fabric from the recliner fused to his behind.  I guess that is the body part fused to the fabric, as the article does not say where it fused.

    He and the recliner, one.

    When he became even more ill and need to go to the hospital, paramedics had to cut a hole in the wall to get him out of the house and the part of the recliner's fabric that had fused to his behind went to the hospital with him.

    The filth and the stench were overpowering it is reported.  Imagine that.

    I guess the guy has never heard of Michelle Obama's get up and move program.